1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to a system and method for harvesting agricultural material and, more particularly, to a system and method for harvesting corncobs from an agricultural field.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The present invention relates to an improvement on the system and method described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,358,141, which is incorporated herein by reference. Agricultural combines typically combine the harvesting and threshing processes into a single vehicle. Combines may be fit with different front ends, or headers, to collect different types of agricultural material, such as chaff, stover, switchgrass seed, grass seed, grass stems, wildflower seeds, leaves, flowers, other seeds, as well as other organic matter. Combines fit with corn headers collect ears of corn comprising kernels of corn on cobs. The ears are typically covered with husks and other types of chaff. The ears are coupled to stalks. The combine grabs the ears, typically separating the ears from the stalks, but sometimes uprooting and processing some or all of the stalk.
Prior art combines intake this material and separate the ears of corn from the stalks, husks and remaining chaff. The combine then takes each ear of corn and uses a thresher to separate the kernels of corn from the cob. Thereafter, the stover, including the shelled cobs, and remaining chaff are ejected back onto the agricultural field. The corn kernels thereafter move to a storage container. The prior art has typically taught methods for retaining the grain and discarding the chaff. With the advent of ethanol production plants, however, which can utilize starch other than grain, it has become desirable to collect some of all of the stover.
While most types of chaff can be converted into some type of energy, much of the chaff is too “fluffy” to justify its collection for subsequent use. That is to say that the density of this material is too light in comparison to its energy content to justify its collection. Stover, such as corn cobs, however, have high density and high energy content, making it desirable to collect for subsequent energy generation. While vehicles can obviously be constructed to collect both corn kernels and corn cobs, it would be desirable to provide a method for adapting the thousands of existing combines to collect both the corn kernels and high density stover.
One drawback associated with collecting kernels of corn and the cobs, is that most prior art systems operate to collect the grain directly on the combine, but require the cobs be collected in another vehicle, such as a grain wagon pulled behind the combine during harvest. The use of a grain wagon in association with the combine complicates maneuvering of the combine.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,358,141 describes a method for harvesting, cleaning and storing both corn kernels and whole cobs on a combine without the necessity of a pull behind wagon. This method and system has proven advantageous. It would be desirable, however, to provide a method for facilitating provision of corn cobs to a supplemental container and for reducing clogging associated with corn cob collection. The difficulties encountered in the prior art discussed herein above are substantially eliminated by the present invention.